Goodman has practiced law for more than 20 years, winning major criminal cases at every level of the Illinois state and federal court systems. After beginning his career at Jenner & Block, he left to establish his own practice as well as to undertake pro bono defense work.

He has won awards for his work on behalf of the wrongfully convicted and has taken on many high-profile clients and challenging cases. Currently, Goodman is representing former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich on the appeal to his political corruption conviction. Last fall in a presentation at the Heller School entitled, “Who’s Afraid of Indefinite Detention?”, he detailed his representation of an Afghan man detained at Guantanamo Bay without charges or evidence of wrongdoing.

“The work that Len does/did for Guantanamo Bay prisoners is absolutely essential to making sure that the human rights of his clients and of prisoners all over the globe are recognized,” says Anita Hill, a senior advisor to the provost and professor of social policy, law and women’s studies. “This work is symbolic of Len's values and the cases that he takes. Len is absolutely committed to representing clients who are poor, whose positions may be unpopular, or who in other ways are marginalized.”

Goodman also teaches federal criminal law as an adjunct professor at DePaul University.